The Ticker

Celebrity news: Patrick Swayze, Oprah Winfrey, Kanye West

September 19, 2009|By News services contributed to this report

E! Online reports that the remains of Patrick Swayze, who died Monday at age 57, have been cremated, and his death certificate indicates that his ashes are being stored at his lawyer's office on behalf of Lisa Niemi, his wife of 34 years. ... Focus Features announced Friday that Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Films will team up with director Sam Mendes ("Away We Go," "American Beauty") to produce a movie based on Joseph O'Neill's novel "Netherland," with Christopher Hampton ("Dangerous Liaisons") writing the script. ... Kanye West, still under fire for hijacking Taylor Swift's awards-show moment, gets some love, in the form of nine nominations, from the BET Hip-Hop Awards, set for Oct. 27.